U.S. Shuts Down 270 Truck-Driving Schools in Nationwide Crackdown

The U.S. Department of Transportation says 270 truck-driving schools have been shut down as federal agencies expand a crackdown on training programs accused of failing to meet commercial driver requirements. The action was announced Monday by Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy alongside officials from Homeland Security and the Department of Justice.

According to federal officials, 110 schools were ordered to close over alleged English-language proficiency violations, while another 160 were cited for problems involving training space or instructors who were not properly licensed.

Duffy said the first group of schools accounted for about 5,000 commercial driver’s license violations connected to English proficiency. Federal rules require commercial drivers to understand road signs, communicate with the public and respond to official questions in English.

The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration is also working with Homeland Security Investigations on a nationwide review of third-party CDL skills testers. FMCSA Administrator Derek Barrs said nearly 30,000 drivers have been placed out of service over English-language proficiency issues.

Federal investigators are looking beyond driving schools. Homeland Security officials said they have identified around 1,000 suspected fraud cases involving people working at state motor vehicle departments, including allegations that some helped drivers bypass federal requirements.

The tougher enforcement follows a 2025 executive order directing the Transportation Department to strengthen English-language requirements for commercial vehicle operators and review how states issue CDLs to foreign drivers. At a July 2026 event, President Donald Trump said more than 24,000 drivers had been removed from the road and over 28,000 non-domiciled CDLs had been canceled under the policy.

The Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Association backed the enforcement effort, while also calling on Congress to adopt legislation that would keep stronger CDL training and language standards in place.

The enforcement comes while the U.S. trucking industry continues to face pressure over driver availability. The American Trucking Associations estimates a shortage of roughly 82,000 drivers, while federal labor projections cited in the report expect employment for heavy and long-haul truck drivers to rise through 2034.